Adaptive control of image capture parameters in virtual reality cameras

ABSTRACT

In an example embodiment, method, apparatus and computer program product are provided. The method includes accessing image capture parameters of a plurality of component cameras at a first time instant, where the image capture parameters for a respective component camera of the component cameras are determined based on a scene appearing in a field of view (FOV) of the respective component camera. At a second time instant, a change in appearance of one or more objects of the scene from a FOV of a first component camera to a FOV of a second component camera is determined. Upon determining the change of the appearance of the one or more objects at the second time instant, image capture parameters of the second component camera are set based on image capture parameters of the first component camera accessed at the first time instant.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Various implementations relate generally to method, apparatus, andcomputer program product for adaptive camera control of virtual realitycameras.

BACKGROUND

Virtual reality (VR) cameras have multiple component cameras (forexample, eight component cameras) that cover the entirethree-dimensional (3D) field of view around themselves, and everycomponent camera has its own image pipeline which processes raw imagesfrom the respective component camera to obtain a quality image. Theimages obtained from multiple component cameras are then ‘stitched’ forvirtual reality consumption. The stitching is similar to panoramaalgorithms and is made possible, as a VR camera rig is so designed thatthe component cameras have overlapping field of views (FOVs).

In a scenario, where a VR camera is moving, for example worn by a hikeron a backpack or on a dolly for shooting a VR movie, the componentcameras keep seeing different scenes, for example, the FOVs of thecomponent cameras keep changing. Existing algorithms for adjusting 3Aparameters (e.g., exposure, focus and white balance) of the componentcameras take time to adapt and converge, similar to any conventionalcameras. When one suddenly changes the FOV of a conventional camera, thecolor and exposure is initially ‘off’, and in a matter of a few secondsor within a second, it corrects itself. While the above is tolerable inconventional video, in the case of VR, when one is immersed in thecontent, if the image content varies as one moves his/her head, it maybe very discomforting.

In an example, imagine a room with a window and the VR camera, in whicha camera A may be imaging the scene near the window and outside, whilean adjacent camera, say, camera B is imaging an interior part of theroom. The exposures for cameras A and B will be very different, with thecamera A having a very low exposure and the camera B having a moderatelyhigh exposure. If the cameras A and B move such that the part of thescene containing the window comes into the FOV of camera B, then, thevideo captured by the camera B will be saturated and overly bright. Thisis because it takes some time for the camera 3A algorithms to figure outthat the scene has changed, and exposure has to be accordingly adjusted.When content like this is consumed via a VR headset in an immersivemanner, this may cause discomfort and lead to a sub-par user experience.

SUMMARY OF SOME EMBODIMENTS

Various aspects of example embodiments are set out in the claims.

In a first aspect, there is provided a method comprising: accessing, ata first time instant, one or more image capture parameters of aplurality of component cameras, the one or more image capture parametersfor a respective component camera of the plurality of component camerasis determined based on a scene appearing in a field of view of therespective component camera; determining, at a second time instant, ifthere is a change in appearance of one or more objects of the scene froma field of view of a first component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras to a field of view of a second component camera of theplurality of component cameras, wherein the one or more objects appearin the field of view of the first component camera at the first timeinstant and the one or more objects appear in the field of view of thesecond component camera at the second time instant; and upon determiningthe change in the appearance of the one or more objects at the secondtime instant, setting one or more image capture parameters of the secondcomponent camera based on one or more image capture parameters of thefirst component camera accessed at the first time instant.

In a second aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising: a virtualreality camera comprising a plurality of component cameras to captureimage frames of a scene, at least one processor; and at least one memorycomprising computer program code, the at least one memory and thecomputer program code configured to, with the at least one processor,cause the apparatus to at least perform: access, at a first timeinstant, one or more image capture parameters of a plurality ofcomponent cameras of a virtual reality camera, the one or more imagecapture parameters for a respective component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras determined based on a scene appearing in a field ofview of the respective component camera; determine, at a second timeinstant, if there is a change in appearance of one or more objects ofthe scene from a field of view of a first component camera of theplurality of component cameras to a field of view of a second componentcamera of the plurality of component cameras, wherein the one or moreobjects appear in the field of view of the first component camera at thefirst time instant and the one or more objects appear in the field ofview of the second component camera at the second time instant; and upondetermining the change in the appearance of the one or more objects atthe second time instant, set one or more image capture parameters of thesecond component camera based on one or more image capture parameters ofthe first component camera accessed at the first time instant.

In a third aspect, there is provided a computer program productcomprising at least one computer-readable storage medium, thecomputer-readable storage medium comprising a set of instructions,which, when executed by one or more processors, cause an apparatus to atleast perform: access, at a first time instant, one or more imagecapture parameters of a plurality of component cameras, the one or moreimage capture parameters for a respective component camera of theplurality of component cameras is determined based on a scene appearingin a field of view of the respective component camera; determine, at asecond time instant, if there is a change in appearance of one or moreobjects of the scene from a field of view of a first component camera ofthe plurality of component cameras to a field of view of a secondcomponent camera of the plurality of component cameras, wherein the oneor more objects appear in the field of view of the first componentcamera at the first time instant and the one or more objects appear inthe field of view of the second component camera at the second timeinstant; and upon determining the change in the appearance of the one ormore objects at the second time instant, set one or more image captureparameters of the second component camera based on one or more imagecapture parameters of the first component camera accessed at the firsttime instant.

In a fourth aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising: means foraccessing, at a first time instant, one or more image capture parametersof a plurality of component cameras, the one or more image captureparameters for a respective component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras is determined based on a scene appearing in a field ofview of the respective component camera; means for determining, at asecond time instant, if there is a change in appearance of one or moreobjects of the scene from a field of view of a first component camera ofthe plurality of component cameras to a field of view of a secondcomponent camera of the plurality of component cameras, wherein the oneor more objects appear in the field of view of the first componentcamera at the first time instant and the one or more objects appear inthe field of view of the second component camera at the second timeinstant; and upon determining the change in the appearance of the one ormore objects at the second time instant, means for setting one or moreimage capture parameters of the second component camera based on one ormore image capture parameters of the first component camera accessed atthe first time instant.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Various embodiments are illustrated by way of example, and not by way oflimitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a device, in accordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 2 illustrates an apparatus for adaptive control of image captureparameters in a virtual reality camera, in accordance with an exampleembodiment;

FIG. 3A illustrates an example representation of an image capturing of ascene by a virtual reality camera at a first time instant, in accordancewith an example embodiment, and

FIG. 3B illustrates an example representation of an image capturing ofthe scene by the virtual reality camera at a second time instant, inaccordance with an example embodiment;

FIG. 4A illustrates another example representation of an image capturingof a scene by a virtual reality camera at a first time instant, inaccordance with an example embodiment, and FIG. 4B illustrates anotherexample representation of an image capturing of the scene by the virtualreality camera at a second time instant, in accordance with an exampleembodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart depicting an example method for adaptive controlof image capture parameters in a virtual reality camera, in accordancewith an example embodiment; and

FIG. 6 is a flowchart depicting an example method for adaptive controlof image capture parameters in a virtual reality camera, in accordancewith another example embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Example embodiments and their potential effects are understood byreferring to FIGS. 1 through 6 of the drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates a device 100, in accordance with an exampleembodiment. It should be understood, however, that the device 100 asillustrated and hereinafter described is merely illustrative of one typeof device that may benefit from various embodiments, therefore, shouldnot be taken to limit the scope of the embodiments. As such, it shouldbe appreciated that at least some of the components described below inconnection with the device 100 may be optional and thus in an exampleembodiment may include more, less or different components than thosedescribed in connection with the example embodiment of FIG. 1. Thedevice 100 could be any of a number of types of touch screen basedmobile electronic devices, for example, portable digital assistants(PDAs), mobile televisions, gaming devices, cellular phones, all typesof computers (for example, laptops, mobile computers or desktops),cameras including virtual reality cameras, mobile digital assistants, orany combination of the aforementioned, and other types of communicationsdevices.

The device 100 may include an antenna 102 (or multiple antennas) inoperable communication with a transmitter 104 and a receiver 106. Thedevice 100 may further include an apparatus, such as a controller 108 orother processing devices that provides signals to and receives signalsfrom the transmitter 104 and the receiver 106, respectively. The signalsmay include signaling information in accordance with the air interfacestandard of the applicable cellular system, and/or may also include datacorresponding to user speech, received data and/or user generated data.In this regard, the device 100 may be capable of operating with one ormore air interface standards, communication protocols, modulation typesand access types. By way of illustration, the device 100 may be capableof operating in accordance with any of a number of first, second, thirdand/or fourth-generation communication protocols or the like. Forexample, the device 100 may be capable of operating in accordance withsecond-generation (2G) wireless communication protocols such as IS-136(time division multiple access (TDMA)), GSM (global system for mobilecommunication), and IS-95 (code division multiple access (CDMA)), orwith third-generation (3G) wireless communication protocols, such asUniversal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), CDMA1000, widebandCDMA (WCDMA) and time division-synchronous CDMA (TD-SCDMA), with 3.9Gwireless communication protocol such as evolved universal terrestrialradio access network (E-UTRAN), with fourth-generation (4G) wirelesscommunication protocols, or the like. As an alternative (oradditionally), the device 100 may be capable of operating in accordancewith non-cellular communication mechanisms. For example, computernetworks such as the Internet, local area network, wide area networks,and the like; short range wireless communication networks such asinclude Bluetooth® networks, Zigbee® networks, Institute of Electric andElectronic Engineers (IEEE) 802.11x networks, and the like; wirelinetelecommunication networks such as public switched telephone network(PSTN).

The controller 108 may include circuitry implementing, among others,audio and logic functions of the device 100. For example, the controller108 may include, but are not limited to, one or more digital signalprocessor devices, one or more microprocessor devices, one or moreprocessor(s) with accompanying digital signal processor(s), one or moreprocessor(s) without accompanying digital signal processor(s), one ormore special-purpose computer chips, one or more field-programmable gatearrays (FPGAs), one or more controllers, one or moreapplication-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), one or morecomputer(s), various analog to digital converters, digital to analogconverters, and/or other support circuits. Control and signal processingfunctions of the device 100 are allocated between these devicesaccording to their respective capabilities. The controller 108 thus mayalso include the functionality to convolutionally encode and interleavemessage and data prior to modulation and transmission. The controller108 may additionally include an internal voice coder, and may include aninternal data modem. Further, the controller 108 may includefunctionality to operate one or more software programs, which may bestored in a memory. For example, the controller 108 may be capable ofoperating a connectivity program, such as a conventional web browser.The connectivity program may then allow the device 100 to transmit andreceive web content, such as location-based content and/or other webpage content, according to a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP),Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and/or the like. In an exampleembodiment, the controller 108 may be embodied as a multi-core processorsuch as a dual or quad core processor. However, any number of processorsmay be included in the controller 108.

The device 100 may also comprise a user interface including an outputdevice such as a ringer 110, an earphone or speaker 112, a microphone114, a display 116, and a user input interface, which may be coupled tothe controller 108. The user input interface, which allows the device100 to receive data, may include any of a number of devices allowing thedevice 100 to receive data, such as a keypad 118, a touch display, amicrophone or other input devices. In embodiments including the keypad118, the keypad 118 may include numeric (0-9) and related keys (#, *),and other hard and soft keys used for operating the device 100.Alternatively or additionally, the keypad 118 may include a conventionalQWERTY keypad arrangement. The keypad 118 may also include various softkeys with associated functions. In addition, or alternatively, thedevice 100 may include an interface device such as a joystick or otheruser input interface. The device 100 further includes a battery 120,such as a vibrating battery pack, for powering various circuits that areused to operate the device 100, as well as optionally providingmechanical vibration as a detectable output.

In an example embodiment, the device 100 includes a media capturingelement, such as a camera, video and/or audio module, in communicationwith the controller 108. The media capturing element may be any meansfor capturing an image, video and/or audio for storage, display ortransmission. In an example embodiment in which the media capturingelement is a camera module 122, the camera module 122 may include adigital camera capable of forming a digital image file from a capturedimage. As such, the camera module 122 includes all hardware, such as alens or other optical component(s), and software for creating a digitalimage file from a captured image. Alternatively, the camera module 122may include the hardware needed to view an image, while a memory deviceof the device 100 stores instructions for execution by the controller108 in the form of software to create a digital image file from acaptured image. In an example embodiment, the camera module 122 mayfurther include a processing element such as a co-processor, whichassists the controller 108 in processing image data and an encoderand/or a decoder for compressing and/or decompressing image data. Theencoder and/or decoder may encode and/or decode according to a JPEGstandard format or another like format. For video, the encoder and/orthe decoder may employ any of a plurality of standard formats such as,for example, standards associated with H.261, H.262/MPEG-2, H.263,H.264, H.264/MPEG-4, MPEG-4, and the like. In some cases, the cameramodule 122 may provide live image data to the display 116. Moreover, inan example embodiment, the display 116 may be located on one side of thedevice 100 and the camera module 122 may include a lens positioned onthe opposite side of the device 100 with respect to the display 116 toenable the camera module 122 to capture images on one side of the device100 and present a view of such images to the user positioned on theother side of the device 100.

The device 100 may further include a user identity module (UIM) 124. TheUIM 124 may be a memory device having a processor built in. The UIM 124may include, for example, a subscriber identity module (SIM), auniversal integrated circuit card (UICC), a universal subscriberidentity module (USIM), a removable user identity module (R-UIM), or anyother smart card. The UIM 124 typically stores information elementsrelated to a mobile subscriber. In addition to the UIM 124, the device100 may be equipped with memory. For example, the device 100 may includea volatile memory 126, such as volatile random access memory (RAM)including a cache area for the temporary storage of data. The device 100may also include other non-volatile memory 128, which may be embeddedand/or may be removable. The non-volatile memory 128 may additionally oralternatively comprise an electrically erasable programmable read onlymemory (EEPROM), flash memory, hard drive, or the like. The memories maystore any number of pieces of information, and data, used by the device100 to implement the functions of the device 100.

FIG. 2 illustrates an apparatus 200 for adaptive camera control ofvirtual reality cameras, in accordance with an example embodiment. Theapparatus 200 may be employed, for example, in the device 100 of FIG. 1.However, it should be noted that the apparatus 200, may also be employedon a variety of other devices both mobile and fixed, and therefore,embodiments should not be limited to application on devices such as thedevice 100 of FIG. 1. In an example embodiment, the apparatus 200 may bea virtual reality camera or may be a virtual reality camera thatincludes multiple component cameras for capturing 360 degree view of ascene. Alternatively, embodiments may be employed on a combination ofdevices including, for example, those listed above. Accordingly, variousembodiments may be embodied wholly at a single device, for example, thedevice 100 or in a combination of devices. Furthermore, it should benoted that the devices or elements described below may not be mandatoryand thus some may be omitted in certain embodiments.

Herein, the term ‘virtual reality camera’ refers to any camera systemthat comprises a plurality of components cameras configured with respectto each other such that the plurality of component cameras are used tocapture 360 degree views of the surrounding. Hence, references to theterm ‘virtual reality camera’ throughout the description should beconstrued as any camera system that has multiple cameras for capturing a360 degree view of the surrounding. The plurality of component camerasmay have overlapping field of views, such that the images (or imageframes) captured by the plurality of component cameras may be stitchedto generate a 360 degree view of the surrounding. Examples of thevirtual reality cameras may include a camera system comprising multiplecomponent cameras that can be worn by a hiker on a backpack or on adolly for shooting a VR movie, or mounted on a mobile van, or may beconfigured in form of other wearable devices. Additional examples of thevirtual reality cameras may include surveillance cameras that may befixed to stationary objects, or may be positioned in indoor spaces suchas shopping malls, convention centers, etc.

The apparatus 200 includes or otherwise is in communication with atleast one processor 202 and at least one memory 204. Examples of the atleast one memory 204 include, but are not limited to, volatile and/ornon-volatile memories. Some examples of the volatile memory include, butare not limited to, random access memory, dynamic random access memory,static random access memory, and the like. Some examples of thenon-volatile memory include, but are not limited to, hard disks,magnetic tapes, optical disks, programmable read only memory, erasableprogrammable read only memory, electrically erasable programmable readonly memory, flash memory, and the like. The memory 204 may beconfigured to store information, data, applications, instructions or thelike for enabling the apparatus 200 to carry out various functions inaccordance with various example embodiments. For example, the memory 204may be configured to buffer input data comprising media content forprocessing by the processor 202. Additionally or alternatively, thememory 204 may be configured to store instructions for execution by theprocessor 202.

An example of the processor 202 may include the controller 108. Theprocessor 202 may be embodied in a number of different ways. Theprocessor 202 may be embodied as a multi-core processor, a single coreprocessor; or combination of multi-core processors and single coreprocessors. For example, the processor 202 may be embodied as one ormore of various processing means such as a coprocessor, amicroprocessor, a controller, a digital signal processor (DSP),processing circuitry with or without an accompanying DSP, or variousother processing devices including integrated circuits such as, forexample, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA), a microcontroller unit (MCU), a hardwareaccelerator, a special-purpose computer chip, or the like. In an exampleembodiment, the multi-core processor may be configured to executeinstructions stored in the memory 204 or otherwise accessible to theprocessor 202. Alternatively or additionally, the processor 202 may beconfigured to execute hard coded functionality. As such, whetherconfigured by hardware or software methods, or by a combination thereof,the processor 202 may represent an entity, for example, physicallyembodied in circuitry, capable of performing operations according tovarious embodiments while configured accordingly. For example, if theprocessor 202 is embodied as two or more of an ASIC, FPGA or the like,the processor 202 may be specifically configured hardware for conductingthe operations described herein. Alternatively, as another example, ifthe processor 202 is embodied as an executor of software instructions,the instructions may specifically configure the processor 202 to performthe algorithms and/or operations described herein when the instructionsare executed. However, in some cases, the processor 202 may be aprocessor of a specific device, for example, a mobile terminal ornetwork device adapted for employing embodiments by furtherconfiguration of the processor 202 by instructions for performing thealgorithms and/or operations described herein. The processor 202 mayinclude, among other things, a clock, an arithmetic logic unit (ALU) andlogic gates configured to support operation of the processor 202.

A user interface 206 may be in communication with the processor 202.Examples of the user interface 206 include, but are not limited to, aninput interface and/or an output interface. The input interface isconfigured to receive an indication of a user input. The output userinterface provides an audible, visual, mechanical or other output and/orfeedback to the user. Examples of the input interface may include, butare not limited to, a keyboard, a mouse, a joystick, a keypad, a touchscreen, soft keys, and the like. Examples of the output interface mayinclude, but are not limited to, a display such as light emitting diodedisplay, thin-film transistor (TFT) display, liquid crystal displays,active-matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) display, amicrophone, a speaker, ringers, vibrators, and the like. In an exampleembodiment, the user interface 206 may include, among other devices orelements, any or all of a speaker, a microphone, a display, and akeyboard, touch screen, or the like. In this regard, for example, theprocessor 202 may comprise user interface circuitry configured tocontrol at least some functions of one or more elements of the userinterface 206, such as, for example, a speaker, ringer, microphone,display, and/or the like. The processor 202 and/or user interfacecircuitry comprising the processor 202 may be configured to control oneor more functions of one or more elements of the user interface 206through computer program instructions, for example, software and/orfirmware, stored on a memory, for example, the at least one memory 204,and/or the like, accessible to the processor 202.

In an example embodiment, the apparatus 200 may include an electronicdevice. Some examples of the electronic device include a virtual realitycamera or a surveillance camera with or without communicationcapabilities, and the like. In an example embodiment, the electronicdevice may include a user interface, for example, the user interface206, having user interface circuitry and user interface softwareconfigured to facilitate a user to control at least one function of theelectronic device through use of a display and further configured torespond to user inputs. In an example embodiment, the electronic devicemay include a display circuitry configured to display at least a portionof the user interface 206 of the electronic device. The display anddisplay circuitry may be configured to facilitate the user to control atleast one function of the electronic device.

In an example embodiment, the electronic device may be embodied as toinclude a transceiver. The transceiver may be any device operating orcircuitry operating in accordance with software or otherwise embodied inhardware or a combination of hardware and software. For example, theprocessor 202 operating under software control, or the processor 202embodied as an ASIC or FPGA specifically configured to perform theoperations described herein, or a combination thereof, therebyconfigures the apparatus 200 or circuitry to perform the functions ofthe transceiver. The transceiver may be configured to receive mediacontent. Examples of the media content may include audio content, videocontent, data, and a combination thereof.

In an example embodiment, the electronic device may be embodied as toinclude a virtual reality (VR) camera 208. In an example embodiment, theVR camera 208 include multiple component cameras (e.g., componentcameras 210, 212, 214 and 216) that are positioned with respect to eachother such that they have overlapping field of views and a 360 degree3-D view of the scene surrounding the VR camera 208 can be obtained bybased on the images/image frames captured individually by the componentcameras 210, 212, 214 and 216 of the VR camera 208. Only four componentcameras 210, 212, 214 and 216 are shown for example purposes tofacilitate present description, and it should be understood that theremay be more than four component cameras present in the VR camera 208.The VR camera 208 may be in communication with the processor 202 and/orother components of the apparatus 200. The VR camera 208 may be incommunication with other imaging circuitries and/or software, and isconfigured to capture digital images or to capture video or othergraphic media. In an example embodiment, the VR camera 208 may be anarray camera or a plenoptic camera capable of capturing light-fieldimages (having multiple views of the same scene) and various views ofimages of the scene can be generated from such captured images. The VRcamera 208, and other circuitries, in combination, may be examples of atleast one component camera such as the camera module 122 of the device100.

These components (202-208) may communicate to each other via acentralized circuit system 218 to facilitate adaptive control of imagecapture parameters of the component cameras for example, the componentcameras 210, 212, 214 and 216 of the VR camera 208. The centralizedcircuit system 218 may be various devices configured to, among otherthings, provide or enable communication between the components (202-208)of the apparatus 200. In certain embodiments, the centralized circuitsystem 218 may be a central printed circuit board (PCB) such as amotherboard, a main board, a system board, or a logic board. Thecentralized circuit system 218 may also, or alternatively, include otherprinted circuit assemblies (PCAs) or communication channel media.

In an example embodiment, the processor 202 is configured to, with thecontent of the memory 204, and optionally with other componentsdescribed herein, to cause the apparatus 200 to access one or more imagecapture parameters for each of the component cameras 210, 212, 214 and216 of the VR camera 208. In an example embodiment, the one or moreimage acquisition parameters include 3A parameters, for example,exposure, focus and white balance. In an example embodiment, aprocessing means may be configured to access the one or more imageparameters. A non-limiting example of the processing means may includethe processor 202, which may be an example of the controller 108, andthe memory 204.

For example, at a first time instant (e.g., time ‘t1’), one or moreimage capture parameters (P1(t 1), P2(t 1), P3(t 1)) for each of aplurality of component cameras (C1, C2, C3 and C4) of a VR camera (suchas the component cameras 210, 212, 214 and 216 of the VR camera 208) areaccessed. Without loss of generality, in an example, the image captureparameters (P1(t 1), P2(t 1), P3(t 1)), may represent exposure setting,focus setting and white balance setting, respectively for any componentcamera at the time instant ‘t1’. In an example embodiment, the values ofthe image capture parameters, for example, the P1(t 1) are set as perthe field of view (the scene before the component camera that can beimaged by the component camera) of the camera component. For example, acomponent camera imaging a bright part of the scene will be using alower exposure compared to another component camera imaging a darkerpart of the scene. For instance, in an example it is assumed that at thetime ‘t1’, the component camera C1 is imaging the scene near the windowfrom which the outside Sun is visible, while an adjacent componentcamera, say, the component camera C2 is imaging an interior part of theroom. In this example, the exposures for the component cameras C1 and C2will be very different, with C1 having a very low exposure and C2 havinga moderately high exposure. If the ‘t1’ is considered as a time instantwhen the VR camera (a combination of the component cameras C1, C2, C3and C4) is initialized to take images/image frames of a scene; within afew frames from the time ‘t1’, the component cameras C1, C2, C3 and C4converge to their optimal settings for the image capture parameters. Forexample, exposures of all component cameras C1, C2, C3 and C4 are set.

In an example embodiment, the values of the image capture parameters(P1(t 1), P2(t 1), P3(t 1)) are accessed for each of the componentcameras (C1, C2, C3 and C4), and as these values are computed as optimalvalues based on the content of the scene, these values are stored. Forinstance, (P1(c 1,t 1), P2(c 1,t 1), P3(c 1,t 1)) are the parameters forthe component camera C1 at the time instant ‘t1’; (P1(c 2,t 1), P2(c 2,t1), P3(c 2,t 1) are the parameters for the component camera C2 at thetime instant ‘t1’, and the (P1(c 3,t 1), P2(c 3,t 1), P3(c 3,t 1)) arethe parameters for the component camera C3 at the time instant ‘t1’.

In an example embodiment, the apparatus 200 is caused to determine at asecond time instant (e.g., time ‘t2’), if there is a change inappearance of one or more objects from field of views of one componentcamera to another component camera of the plurality of component camerasdue to a relative movement between the virtual reality (VR) camera andthe one or more objects of the scene. For instance, one or more objectsthat appear in the field of view of a first camera at the first timeinstant (time ‘t1’) may appear in the field of view (FOV) of a secondcamera at the second time instant (time ‘t2’) due to a relative movementbetween the VR camera and the one or more objects of the scene or due toa relative movement between the VR camera and the entire scene. In anexample, consider an object O1 appears in the FOV of the first componentcamera (e.g., camera C2) at the time ‘t1’; and at the time ‘t2’, due toa relative movement between the VR camera and scene, the object O1 nowappears in the FOV of the second component camera (e.g., camera C3).Similarly, in an example, consider an object O2 appears in the FOV ofthe first component camera (e.g., camera C3) at the time ‘t1’; and atthe time ‘t2’, due to a relative movement between the VR camera andscene, the object O2 now appears in the FOV of the second componentcamera (e.g., camera C1).

Herein, it should be understood that the terms ‘first component camera’and the ‘second component camera’ are used merely to distinguish betweentwo separate component cameras of the plurality of component cameraspresent in the VR camera, and that the ‘first component camera’ refer toa component camera from the FOV of which the one or more objects moveand appear in the FOV of another component camera referred to as the‘second component camera’. It should further be noted that the ‘relativemovement’ between the VR camera and the one or more objects of the sceneor the entire scene may happen either because of movement of the VRcamera, movement of the person/object carrying the VR camera, movementof the entire scene, movement of the one or more objects in the scene,or one or more combinations of these movements. The movement of theobjects may be determined based on tracking the objects using suitableobject detection and tracking algorithms. Further, the movement of theVR camera is tracked based on an accelerometer reading associated withthe VR camera. For instance, the VR camera may include components suchas an accelerometer, a gyroscope, etc to continuously compute the degreeof rotations, or changes in the orientation of the VR camera between anytwo time instants.

Upon determination of the change in the appearance of the at least oneobject at the second time instant (t2), in an example embodiment, theapparatus 200 is caused to set one or more image capture parameters ofthe second component camera based on the one or more image captureparameters of the first component camera that are already accessed atthe first time instant (t1). For example, if a change in appearance ofthe object O1 from the FOV of the first component camera (e.g.,component camera C2) at the time ‘t1’ to the FOV of the second componentcamera (e.g., component camera C3) at the time ‘t2’ is determined, theone or more image capture parameters of the component camera C3 are setsame as the one or more image capture parameters of the component cameraC2 at the time ‘t1’. For instance, in a representation, (P1(c 1,t 2),P2(c 1,t 2), P3(c 1,t 2)) are the image capture parameters for thecomponent camera C1 at the time instant ‘t2’; (P1(c 2,t 2), P2(c 2,t 2),P3(c 2,t 2) are the parameters for the component camera C2 at the timeinstant ‘t2’, and the (P1(c 3,t 2), P2(c 3,t 2), P3(c 3,t 2)) are theparameters for the component camera C3 at the time instant ‘t2’. In thisexample, the values of (P1(c 3,t 2), P2(c 3,t 2), P3(c 3,t 2) may besame as the respective values of image capture parameters of thecomponent camera C1 at time ‘t1’, for example, (P1(c 1,t 1), P2(c 1,t1), P3(c 1,t 1). In an example embodiment, a processing means may beconfigured to set the one or more image parameters for the secondcomponent camera. A non-limiting example of the processing means mayinclude the processor 202, which may be an example of the controller108.

FIGS. 3A and 3B represent schematic representation of a VR camera 302for capturing images of a scene for facilitating description of anexample embodiment. In FIG. 3A, a position of the VR camera 302 at thetime instant ‘t1’ is shown. It is to be understood that a relativemovement between the VR camera 302 and the scene (or one more objects ofthe scene) may be caused either by a movement of a vehicle 304 on whichthe VR camera 302 is mounted or the rotation of the VR camera 302 aroundone of its axis vertical to the vehicle 304, or movement of the one ormore objects of the scene, for example, movement of a person 308 or avehicle 310 or any other movable objects in the scene.

In this example representation of FIG. 3A, without loss of generality,the VR camera 302 includes component cameras C1, C2, C2 and C4. At timeinstant ‘t1’, scene containing Sun 320 appears in the FOV of thecomponent camera C1, a scene containing water body 322 appears in theFOV of the component camera C2, a scene containing the person 308appears in the FOV of the component camera C3 and a scene containing thevehicle 310 appears in the FOV of the component camera C4. The FOV ofthe component camera C1 is exemplarily shown within two dashed lines 352and 354, FOV of the component camera C2 is exemplarily shown within twodashed lines 356 and 358, FOV of the component camera C3 is exemplarilyshown within two dashed lines 360 and 362, and FOV of the componentcamera C4 is exemplarily shown within two dashed lines 364 and 366. Itshould be noted that the component cameras C1-C4 may have overlappingFOVs, for example, the area shown between the dashed lines 352 and 356represents an overlapping FOV between the component cameras C1 and C2,and similarly the area shown between the dashed lines 358 and 360represents an overlapping FOV between the component cameras C1 and C3.In an example embodiment, the component cameras C1, C2, C3 and C4 adjustto image capture parameters (exposure, focus and white balance) withinfew frames from the time when the VR camera 302 is initialized, based onthe content the scene. The following Table 1 lists down the imagecapture parameter values (optimal values) for the component cameras C1,C2, C3 and C4 at the time instant t1.

TABLE 1 Component Component Component Component Camera C1 Camera C2Camera C3 Camera C4 Scene Sun 320 Water body Person 308 Vehicle 310 322Exposure 2 ms 10 ms 12 ms 8 ms Focus Infinity Infinity 3 m 10 m WhiteBalance 5000k 6500k 5000k 5500k (Color Temperature)

In one scenario, it may be assumed that the vehicle 304 moves such thatthe orientation of the VR camera 302 changes at the time instant ‘t2’with respect to the orientation of the VR camera 302 at the time instant‘t1’. For instance, as shown in the example representation of FIG. 3B,at time instant ‘t2’, scene containing the Sun 320 appears in the FOV ofthe component camera C2, scene containing the water body 322 appears inthe FOV of the component camera C3, scene containing the person 308appears in the FOV of the component camera C4 and scene containing thevehicle 310 appears in the FOV of the component camera C1.

In various example embodiments, the apparatus 200 is caused to set theimage capture parameters at the time instant ‘t2’ based on the previoussettings instead of re-calculating the settings for the image captureparameters. For instance, the Sun 320 appeared in the FOV of thecomponent camera C1 at the time instant ‘t1’ and due to relativemovement between the VR camera 302 and the scene, the Sun 320 appears inthe FOV of the component camera C2 at the time instant ‘t2’. Hence, theimage capture parameters for the component camera C2 at the time instant‘t2’ can be taken directly from the corresponding values of the imagecapture parameters for the component camera C1 at the time instant ‘t1’.In an example embodiment, in the present example scenario explainedherein, the updated values of the image capture parameters for thecomponent cameras C1, C2, C3 and C4 at the time instant ‘t2’ are listedin the following Table 2.

TABLE 2 Component Component Component Component Camera C1 Camera C2Camera C3 Camera C4 Scene Vehicle 310 Sun 320 Water body Person 308 322Exposure 8 ms 2 ms 10 ms 12 ms Focus 10 m Infinity Infinity 3 m WhiteBalance 5500k 5000k 6500k 5000k (Color Temperature)

FIGS. 4A and 4B represent another schematic representation of a VRcamera for capturing images of a scene for facilitating description ofan example embodiment. The representation of the scene in FIG. 4A is ata time instant ‘t1’ and a representation of the scene in FIG. 4B is at atime instant ‘t2’, where the time instant ‘t2’ is subsequent to the timeinstant ‘t1’. A VR camera 402 is shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B comprisingcomponent cameras C1, C2 and C3. The scene comprises a room comprisingan exterior window 410 having glass panels, a spotlight 412 and aperformer (e.g., dancer) 414 near a wall 416.

As shown in FIG. 4A, at the time instant ‘t1’, the exterior window 410having outside view of daylight appears in the FOV of the componentcamera C1, the spotlight 412 appears in the FOV of the component cameraC2 and the performer 414 (near the wall 416) appears in the FOV of thecomponent camera C3. The FOV of the component camera C1 is exemplarilyshown within two dashed lines 452 and 454, FOV of the component cameraC2 is exemplarily shown within two dashed lines 456 and 458, and FOV ofthe component camera 408 is exemplarily shown within two dashed lines460 and 462. In a scenario, the time instant ‘t1’ being considered atime when the VR camera 402 is initialized, the image capture parametersof the component cameras C1, C2 and C3 are set by the processor 202based on the content of the scene to be captured by the componentcameras C1, C2 and C3 (e.g., objects present in the FOVs of thecomponent cameras C1, C2 and C3). Example values of some example imagecapture parameters set for the component cameras C1, C2 and C3 arelisted in the following Table 3. It is to be understood that the imagecapture parameters in the Table 3 are merely for illustrative purposes,and corresponding values are not intended to be accurate.

TABLE 3 Component Component Component Camera C1 Camera C2 Camera C3Scene Window 410 Spotlight 412 Performer 414 Exposure 10 ms 2 ms 8 msFocus Infinity 4 m 2 m White Balance 5500k 4000k 4500k (ColorTemperature)

In a scenario, it is assumed that the performer 414 moves such that theperformer 414 appears in the FOV of the component camera C1 at the timeinstant ‘t2’ instead of in the FOV of the component camera C3.Accordingly, in this example scenario, both the objects such as thewindow 410 and the performer 414 appear in the FOV of the componentcamera C1 and only the wall 416 appears in the FOV of the componentcamera C3. In this example scenario, if the performer 414 is consideredas the object of interest, the settings of the image capture parametersof the component camera C3 at the time instant ‘t1’ are transferred asthe settings of the image capture parameters of the component camera C1at the time instant ‘t2’, and image capture parameters for othercomponent cameras C2 and C3 may remain unchanged. In this examplescenario explained herein, the updated values of the image captureparameters for the component cameras C1, C2 and C3 at the time instant‘t2’ are listed in the following Table 4.

TABLE 4 Component Component Component camera C1 Camera C2 Camera C3Scene Window 410, Spotlight 412 Wall 416 Performer 414 Exposure 8 ms 2ms 8 ms Focus 2 m 4 m 2 m White Balance 4500k 4000k 4500k (ColorTemperature)

Accordingly, it is noted that the objects are tracked across the FOVs ofthe components cameras C1, C2 and C3 so that the image captureparameters (3A parameters) can be intelligently transferred, so that theend user perceives even tone throughout the imaging process by thecomponent cameras C1, C2 and C3 of the VR camera 402.

It is further noted that in some scenarios, it may happen that views ofthe scene for a component camera may change significantly, and the sameviews may not have been imaged previously. In an example embodiment, insuch scenarios, the one or more image capture parameters may be computedas per the actual content of the scene appearing in the FOV of thecomponent camera. Further, in some scenarios, it may happen that someobject that was at a distance from the component camera now moves closeto the component camera, thus drastically changing what the componentcamera sees. The apparatus 200 is caused to determine such scenarios bytracking of objects, and the apparatus 200 is caused to determine newimage capture parameters (e.g., new 3A parameters). In an exampleembodiment, local motion of objects/entities in the scene for eachcomponent camera can be tracked to see if the objects/entities aremoving towards the component camera. Upon occurrence of such scenario,in an example embodiment, the 3A parameters can be computed and trackedon the entities/objects, which means, even as the objects/entities nearsthe camera, the component camera keeps adapting gradually. In anexample, if the component camera is using a matrix metering mode, withdifferent regions having different weights, it could adapt the weightssuch that the entities/objects moving towards the camera get the highestweight, so that the entities/objects are rendered well in terms oflightness and color. Alternately, upon sensing that an object/entity ismoving towards the camera, spot metering could be used on theentity/object.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart depicting an example method 500 for adaptivecontrol of image capture parameters in a virtual reality camera inaccordance with an example embodiment. The method 500 depicted in theflowchart may be executed by, for example, the apparatus 200 of FIG. 2.

At 505, the method 500 includes accessing, at a first time instant, oneor more image capture parameters of a plurality of component cameras ofa virtual reality camera. More specifically, the one or more imagecapture parameters for a respective component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras are determined based on a scene appearing in a fieldof view of the respective component camera. In an example embodiment,the one or more image capture parameters are associated with acquisitionof views (or images) of a scene. Some non-limiting examples of the imagecapture parameters include exposure, focus and white balance. In anexample embodiment, the image capture parameters accessed at the firsttime instant are optimal image capture parameters that are set based onthe content of the scene that appear in the FOV of the componentcameras.

At 510, the method 500 includes determining, at a second time instant,if there is a change in appearance of one or more objects of the scenefrom a field of view of a first component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras to a FOV of a second component camera of the pluralityof component cameras. It is to be noted that the one or more objectsappear in the FOV of the first component camera at the first timeinstant and the one or more objects appear in the FOV of the secondcomponent camera at the second time instant.

At 515, the method 500, upon determining the change in the appearance ofthe one or more objects at the second time instant, set one or moreimage capture parameters of the second component camera based on one ormore image capture parameters of the first component camera that arealready accessed at the first time instant.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart depicting an example method for adaptive controlof image capture parameters, in accordance with another exampleembodiment. The method 600 depicted in the flowchart may be executed by,for example, the apparatus 200 of FIG. 2.

At 605, the VR camera is initialized to take images (or views) of thescene, and the each of the component camera of the VR camera is ready tocapture image frames. At 610, it may be assumed that at time t=‘t1’(i.e., first time instant), the image capture parameters of thecomponent cameras are determined (or adjusted/set) according to contentof the scene appearing in the FOV of the respective component cameras.For example, if in an FOV of a component camera, a bright scene orbright objects appear, then the exposure value for the component cameracan be adjusted to a smaller value, and if in an FOV of a componentcamera, a slightly darker scene or not so bright objects appear, thenthe exposure value for such component can be a slightly higher value.The image capture parameters are set by a processing element, forexample, the processor 202. At 615, the one or more image captureparameters of the plurality of component cameras are stored in a memorylocation or buffer, for example, the memory 204.

At 620, it is determined if there is a change in appearance of the oneor more objects from FOV of one component camera (e.g., first componentcamera) to FOV of another component camera (e.g., second componentcamera). It is noted that the change in appearance of the one or moreobjects from FOV of one camera to another camera over time may occur dueto a relative movement between the VR camera and the one or more objectsof the scene, or movement of entire scene with respect to the VR camera.

At 625, at time t=‘t2’, upon determination of the changes in appearanceof the one or more objects, the one or more image capture parameters ofthe another component camera (second component camera) based on the oneor more image capture parameters of the component camera (firstcomponent camera) in which the one or more objects already appeared atthe time t=‘t1’. At 630, the image frame of the scene is captured by theplurality of component cameras based on the image capture parameters ofthe respective component cameras set at the time t=‘t2’. It is notedthat in an example embodiment, changes in appearance of objects from FOVof one component camera to another component camera are determined on acontinuous basis, and upon determination the already computed values ofthe image parameters of the component camera are used, to precludere-computation of the image capture parameters for the component camerain which the objects appear.

It should be noted that to facilitate discussions of the flowcharts ofFIGS. 5 and 6, certain operations are described herein as constitutingdistinct steps performed in a certain order. Such implementations areexamples only and non-limiting in scope. Certain operation may begrouped together and performed in a single operation, and certainoperations can be performed in an order that differs from the orderemployed in the examples set forth herein. Moreover, certain operationsof the methods 500 and 600 are performed in an automated fashion. Theseoperations involve substantially no interaction with the user. Otheroperations of the methods 500 and 600 may be performed by in a manualfashion or semi-automatic fashion. These operations involve interactionwith the user via one or more user interface presentations.

The methods depicted in these flowcharts may be executed by, forexample, the apparatus 200 of FIG. 2. Operations of the flowchart, andcombinations of operation in the flowcharts, may be implemented byvarious means, such as hardware, firmware, processor, circuitry and/orother device associated with execution of software including one or morecomputer program instructions. For example, one or more of theprocedures described in various embodiments may be embodied by computerprogram instructions. In an example embodiment, the computer programinstructions, which embody the procedures, described in variousembodiments may be stored by at least one memory device of an apparatusand executed by at least one processor in the apparatus. Any suchcomputer program instructions may be loaded onto a computer or otherprogrammable apparatus (for example, hardware) to produce a machine,such that the resulting computer or other programmable apparatus embodymeans for implementing the operations specified in the flowchart. Thesecomputer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readablestorage memory (as opposed to a transmission medium such as a carrierwave or electromagnetic signal) that may direct a computer or otherprogrammable apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that theinstructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an articleof manufacture the execution of which implements the operationsspecified in the flowchart. The computer program instructions may alsobe loaded onto a computer or other programmable apparatus to cause aseries of operations to be performed on the computer or otherprogrammable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process suchthat the instructions, which execute on the computer or otherprogrammable apparatus, provide operations for implementing theoperations in the flowchart. The operations of the methods are describedwith help of apparatus 200. However, the operations of the methods canbe described and/or practiced by using any other apparatus.

Without in any way limiting the scope, interpretation, or application ofthe claims appearing below, a technical effect of one or more of theexample embodiments disclosed herein is to improve adaptive control ofimage capture parameters of component cameras in a virtual realitycamera. Various example embodiments make use for the already computedvalues of the image capture parameters for the component cameras foradaptively setting the image capture parameters for the componentcameras over time based on the changes in the scene or changes in theorientation or positioning of the virtual camera. Hence, instead ofre-computing the image capture parameters all the time, variousembodiments described herein transfer the image capture parameters fromone component camera to another component, following objects or regionsof interest across the FOV of the component cameras, as the componentcameras or the scene moves.

Various embodiments described above may be implemented in software,hardware, application logic or a combination of software, hardware andapplication logic. The software, application logic and/or hardware mayreside on at least one memory, at least one processor, an apparatus or,a computer program product. In an example embodiment, the applicationlogic, software or an instruction set is maintained on any one ofvarious conventional computer-readable media. In the context of thisdocument, a “computer-readable medium” may be any media or means thatcan contain, store, communicate, propagate or transport the instructionsfor use by or in connection with an instruction execution system,apparatus, or device, such as a computer, with one example of anapparatus described and depicted in FIGS. 1 and/or 2. Acomputer-readable medium may comprise a computer-readable storage mediumthat may be any media or means that can contain or store theinstructions for use by or in connection with an instruction executionsystem, apparatus, or device, such as a computer.

If desired, the different functions discussed herein may be performed ina different order and/or concurrently with each other. Furthermore, ifdesired, one or more of the above-described functions may be optional ormay be combined.

Although various aspects of the embodiments are set out in theindependent claims, other aspects comprise other combinations offeatures from the described embodiments and/or the dependent claims withthe features of the independent claims, and not solely the combinationsexplicitly set out in the claims.

It is also noted herein that while the above describes exampleembodiments of the invention, these descriptions should not be viewed ina limiting sense. Rather, there are several variations and modificationswhich may be made without departing from the scope of the presentdisclosure as defined in the appended claims.

1-44. (canceled)
 45. A method comprising: accessing, at a first timeinstant, one or more image capture parameters of a plurality ofcomponent cameras, wherein one or more image capture parameters for arespective component camera of the plurality of component cameras aredetermined based on a scene appearing in a field of view of therespective component camera; determining, at a second time instant, ifthere is a change in appearance of one or more objects of the scene froma field of view of a first component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras to a field of view of a second component camera of theplurality of component cameras, wherein the one or more objects appearin the field of view of the first component camera at the first timeinstant and the one or more objects appear in the field of view of thesecond component camera at the second time instant; and upon determiningthe change in the appearance of the one or more objects at the secondtime instant, setting one or more image capture parameters of the secondcomponent camera based on one or more image capture parameters of thefirst component camera accessed at the first time instant.
 46. Themethod as claimed in claim 45, further comprising capturing, at thesecond time instant, an image frame of the scene by the second componentcamera based on the one or more image capture parameters that are setfor the second component camera at the second time instant.
 47. Themethod as claimed in claim 46, wherein the determining the change inappearance of the one or more objects at the second time instantcomprises tracking the one or more objects.
 48. The method as claimed inclaim 45, wherein the determining the change in appearance of the one ormore objects at the second time instant comprises tracking a movement ofa virtual reality camera comprising the plurality of component cameras.49. The method as claimed in claim 45, wherein setting the one or moreimage capture parameters for the second component camera furthercomprises computing the one or more image capture parameters for thesecond component camera if the one or more objects appearing in thefield of view of the second component camera at the second time instantdid not appear in each of the plurality of component cameras at thefirst time instant.
 50. The method as claimed in claim 45, furthercomprising configuring the plurality of component cameras as a virtualreality camera to capture a 360 degree view of the scene.
 51. The methodas claimed in claim 45, wherein the one or more image capture parameterscomprise one or more of a white balance, a focus, or an exposure.
 52. Anapparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memorycomprising computer program code, the at least one memory and thecomputer program code configured to, with the at least one processor,cause the apparatus to at least perform: access, at a first timeinstant, one or more image capture parameters of the plurality ofcomponent cameras, wherein one or more image capture parameters for arespective component camera of the plurality of component cameras aredetermined based on a scene appearing in a field of view of therespective component camera; determine, at a second time instant, ifthere is a change in appearance of one or more objects of the scene froma field of view of a first component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras to a field of view of a second component camera of theplurality of component cameras, wherein the one or more objects appearin the field of view of the first component camera at the first timeinstant and the one or more objects appear in the field of view of thesecond component camera at the second time instant; and upon determiningthe change in the appearance of the one or more objects at the secondtime instant, set one or more image capture parameters of the secondcomponent camera based on one or more image capture parameters of thefirst component camera that are accessed at the first time instant. 53.The apparatus as claimed in claim 52, wherein the apparatus is furthercaused, at least in part to facilitate capturing, at the second timeinstant, an image frame of the scene by the second component camerabased on the one or more image capture parameters that are set for thesecond component cameras at the second time instant.
 54. The apparatusas claimed in claim 53, wherein for determining the change in appearanceof the one or more objects at the second time instant, the apparatus isfurther caused, at least in part to track the one or more objects. 55.The apparatus as claimed in claim 52, wherein for determining the changein appearance of the one or more objects at the second time instant, theapparatus is further caused, at least in part to, track a movement ofthe virtual reality camera.
 56. The apparatus as claimed in claim 52,wherein for setting the one or more image capture parameters for thesecond component camera, the apparatus is further caused, at least inpart to compute the one or more image capture parameters for the secondcomponent camera if the one or more objects appearing in the field ofview of the second component camera at the second time instant did notappear in each of the plurality of component cameras at the first timeinstant.
 57. The apparatus as claimed in claim 52, wherein the pluralityof component cameras are configured in the virtual reality camera suchthat the plurality of component cameras capture a 360 degree view of thescene.
 58. The apparatus as claimed in claim 52, wherein the one or moreimage capture parameters comprise one or more of a white balance, afocus, or an exposure.
 59. A computer program product comprising atleast one computer-readable storage medium, the computer-readablestorage medium comprising a set of instructions, which, when executed byone or more processors, cause an apparatus to at least perform: access,at a first time instant, one or more image capture parameters of aplurality of component cameras, wherein one or more image captureparameters for a respective component camera of the plurality ofcomponent cameras are determined based on a scene appearing in a fieldof view of the respective component camera; determine, at a second timeinstant, if there is a change in appearance of one or more objects ofthe scene from a field of view of a first component camera of theplurality of component cameras to a field of view of a second componentcamera of the plurality of component cameras, wherein the one or moreobjects appear in the field of view of the first component camera at thefirst time instant and the one or more objects appear in the field ofview of the second component camera at the second time instant; and upondetermining the change in the appearance of the one or more objects atthe second time instant, set one or more image capture parameters of thesecond component camera based on one or more image capture parameters ofthe first component camera that are accessed at the first time instant.60. The computer program product as claimed in claim 59, wherein theapparatus is further caused, at least in part to facilitate capturing,at the second time instant, an image frame of the scene by the secondcomponent cameras based on the one or more image capture parameters thatare set for the second component cameras at the second time instant. 61.The computer program product as claimed in claim 60, wherein fordetermining the change in appearance of the one or more objects at thesecond time instant, the apparatus is further caused, at least in partto track the one or more objects.
 62. The computer program product asclaimed in claim 59, wherein for determining the change in appearance ofthe one or more objects at the second time instant, the apparatus isfurther caused, at least in part to, track a movement of a virtualreality camera comprising the plurality of component cameras.
 63. Thecomputer program product as claimed in claim 59, wherein for setting theone or more image capture parameters for the second component camera,the apparatus is further caused, at least in part to compute the one ormore image capture parameters for the second component camera if the oneor more objects appearing in the field of view of the second componentcamera at the second time instant did not appear in each of theplurality of component cameras at the first time instant.
 64. Thecomputer program product as claimed in the claim 59, wherein the one ormore image capture parameters comprise one or more of a white balance, afocus, or an exposure.